Freedom Fighters
by CatyTaiiji
Summary: The Akatsuki has 8 of the 9 tails, and are having villages bow to them. The ones who denied, were destroyed. Konoha is a village that denied, now a group of teenagers have set out to stop the Akatsuki. All the Akatsuki are alive now. MAJOR SPOILERS!
1. Chapter 1

_It was a bright, sunny, cheerful day..._

No, let me rephrase that for you.

_It was a dark, gloomy day. In all honesty, it sucked ass, and it wasn't even my lunch break yet. _

That's better.

The Hokage, Tsunade, was currently letting us, the loyal Jonins, Chuunins, and ANBU, know of a letter she found pinned to her wall earlier today. It was 5 in the morning, and most of us were already grumpy from our lack of coffee and other things. I looked over to one of my friends, shaking my head in a mock disappointed way at how she actually got ready for this meeting. I looked down at myself in my loose sweatpants and t-shirt, my pajamas of course. If it wasn't close to being fall, I would have opted for my lovely boxers.

"Sakura, care to explain why you are already looking half-decent?" I asked, tilting my head, blocking Tsunade's booming voice.

"Well, Caty, why don't you explain that bird-nest of a hair style?" Sakura asked sarcastically, grinning brightly.

Oh yeah, I suppose you guys have no idea who I am. My name is Caty Taiiji, your usual, 18-year old ninja. I'm a Jonin now, along with Sakura and the others. I suppose you are also wondering why you've never seen me around before. The answer to that is: I'm just THAT much of a kickass ninja.

I shrugged and grinned at Sakura sheepishly, pushing a piece of red hair behind my ear. I WAS going to respond to her question with something that'd defiantly get me punched when a loud yell distracted everyone.

"The next Hokage HAS ARRIVED!" The voice yelled. Everyone kept their eyes on the Hokage, knowing who this 'mystery' person was. Who was it? It was the boy currently in the orange jumpsuit with a penguin hat. It was the one and only, Naruto Uzumaki, of course. Common sense? Hell no. Color blind? Maybe. ADHD? You know it.

"Oh god, Naruto." I heard Sakura mutter, slapping her forehead. Well, this certainly brightened my day, now we all get the PRIVLEDGE to get a killer headache when Tsunade starts yelling at Naruto.

"Naruto Uzumaki!" Tsunade yelled, as if she read my mind. Maybe she did, or maybe I said it out-loud…how would she have heard me though? Maybe her hearing is just THAT good.

"Yes, granny?" Naruto asked, looking up at her innocently, well…as innocently as he could.

"You're late." Tsunade said simply.

"No, you are just early!" Naruto yelled, pointing a finger at her childishly, "ALL OF YOU ARE!"

Sakura grabbed onto Naruto, after seeing Tsunade's eye twitch, and forced Naruto to bow his head.

"Forgive him, Lady Tsunade." Sakura said apologetically, as Naruto muttered a string of curses.

Tsunade gave them a look, obviously showing this wasn't over yet. Damn, that woman was scary sometimes.

"As I was saying," Tsunade continued from where she left off, "The Akatsuki is stronger than ever, there are only a few villages that haven't bowed to them. We've received this letter, telling us to obey them. We do it, or risk being destroyed."

Way to be honest there, Tsunade.

"They can't destroy us!" Naruto protested, raising his fist.

"They have 8 of the 9 tails, Naruto." Tsunade stated, looking at him seriously, "Many villages now obey them, this could turn to an all out war."

Naruto couldn't find a positive comeback for that, he opened his mouth, and then shut it.

"Yah, well…The other villages are dumb anyway." He said lamely, causing everyone to sigh loudly. I face palmed, looking at Naruto through my fingers. He laughed nervously at everyone's looks at him.

"ANYWAY," Tsunade cleared her throat, "We need to figure out what to do."

"Give into them of course." Someone from the back said, taking the attention away from Naruto.

Of course, Naruto being Naruto, had to take that attention back.

"NO! That's DUMB! You're DUMB! We will fight! BELIEVE IT!" Naruto exclaimed, jumping into the air. I was waiting for him to go all army on us, and pull out a machine gun or something.

"YOSH! THAT'D BE THE YOUTHFUL THING TO DO!" The thing that is named Lee, suddenly exclaimed. Where the hell did he come from…? I heard Guy laughing loudly from behind me. Shivering slightly, I shuffled my way closer to Sakura, who was deep in thought.

"Thinking hard, Pinky?" I asked innocently. She shot a glare at me, before nodding her head.

"There has to be SOMETHING we can do." She said, looking determined, "I know the Akatsuki are powerful, but still."

I nodded my head, thinking also. It's hard to think though when suddenly Naruto and Lee are yelling about 'freedom fighting'. That's when it clicked. The little light bulb over my head suddenly turned ON, and I could see the bright light at the end of the tunnel…maybe I was going too far there. Judging by the look on Sakura's face, she had gotten an idea too.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking…?" I asked curiously, as she turned her head to look at me sideways.

"I think I am." Sakura replied, giving me a sideways grin. Oh boy, this must be good!

We opened our mouths at the same time, and let me tell you, it was not the same thing.

"SASUKE WOULD KNOW WHAT TO DO!"

"LET'S START A FREEDOM FIGHTING GROUP TO TAKE AKATSUKI OUT!"

I'm sure you can guess what came out of which mouth. If not, let's take a look at Sakura. The one who used to be obsessed with Sasuke. I'm the one who can't really stand him. Is that enough to get who said what?

"…What?" I asked, after a pause. She looked equally confused as I did, or at least I'm pretty sure that's what my face was twisted into, that or disgust.

"Sasuke would know what to do." Sakura stated again, looking not as sure as she did the first time. I was tempted to throw Lee at her.

"No," I said simply, "He wouldn't know what to do. He fails."

Sakura frowned, "Just because you don't like Sasuke doesn't mean you should put him down."

"I didn't put him down." I answered with a mock laugh, waving her off, "I just said he wouldn't know what to do."

"I'd know what to do." Came that cool, indifferent voice that could probably make most females and males alike, melt. I didn't need to turn around to know who it was, because judging by everyone's faces in front of me, it was the all great, now only, Uchiha Sasuke.

"What would you do, Sasuke?" Sakura cooed, blinking at him. I almost gagged from the lust in her eyes. Sure, she no longer obsessed over him, but that doesn't mean she stopped liking him.

Now I turned around to hear his answer, rolling my eyes at how he was standing. One leg was propped on a random chair, wait…why am I standing then? Anyway, his arms were crossed, and that same damn smirk was on his face.

"I'd fight." He said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Didn't I just say that?

"Oh, Sasuke! That's so smart!" Sakura and Ino yelled happily. Oh sure, it's smart when HE says it. When it's Naruto and I people act like it's dumb.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru scoffed, with his arms crossed. When did HE get here? They must be really good at what they do I guess.

Sasuke smirked, as I narrowed my eyes at him. Shikamaru yawned, stealing Sasuke's chair and sitting on it. Sasuke rolled his eyes in Shikamaru's direction, I suddenly pictured him flipping his hair and walking away.

"I know it's smart. It's because I said it." Sasuke said cockily.

"Whoa, out of character much?" I asked, rolling my eyes. It was his turn to narrow his eyes at me.

"Just rolled out of bed much?" He mocked, in a high pitched voice. I'm guessing it was supposed to be mine.

"Actually, I kinda fell after I got a blow horn to the ear." I replied in all seriousness. He wasn't expecting a non-sarcastic response, and just shrugged me off. Damn right Uchiha, I win.

Naruto pushed Shikamaru off the chair, standing on it. Everyone turned their attention to him again, I'm guessing Tsunade gave up on this serious meeting.

"We're going to FIGHT!" He gave a dazzling smile, and I heard a loud thump in the back. Ah, I guess Hinata is here.

Guessing by the loud cheers from the people in the room, they agreed.

"I mean, this should be EASY!" Sakura laughed, grinning widely, "Most of the members are dead!"

I never thought someone could be so wrong.


	2. Chapter 2

Authors Note:

Yahh, I know this is the same chapter as I'm sure you've previously read…but I changed the ending because frankly, I don't feel like adding another OC into this story quite yet XD I think it's too much for readers to take in right away. I'm sure some of you are annoyed at the repeat of chapter 2, but I promise to have chapter 3 out tonight or tomorrow. Promise! (: You can just skip the first part if you've already read it, just go to where it changed scenes. Thanks!

Rain pounded hard down on the buildings of Amegakure, also known as the Hidden Rain Village. A lone, tall building stood in the middle of the smaller, but very industrial village. There on the building stood a man, wearing a very dark cloak with what appeared to don red clouds on it. He had his hood up, along with an orange spiraled mask. A shining red eye glowed from the single hole in the mask, as he stared out among his land.  
"Madara." A feminine voice echoed softly from behind the man now known as Madara.  
"It's Leader to you, Konan." Madara stated coolly to the woman, turning to look at her. Konan had blue hair, currently in a bun with a light origami flower in it. She, too, wore a cloak such as Madara. Her amber eyes watched her so called 'leader' carefully, not fully trusting him.  
"Leader, everything is prepared." Konan stated, now looking at him in the eye, stepping out into the rain.  
"Good. Let's go, it's going to be a long night for us both." And with a wave of his cloak, they walked into the building. Konan felt nervous, she had originally left the Akatsuki after Pein was killed and Konoha was sparred. She came back to Amegakure in hopes of forming an alliance with Konoha, wishing to bring peace to the countries, and then Madara came back.  
Madara had ordered her to come back to the Akatsuki, wanting her help for taking over the ninja world, which Konan rejected right away. But, Madara had promised her something she never would ever reject. He had promised her that she'd receive her life back. Pein. Konan was a smart girl, always have been, always thinking about what to do before making a decision. But this was Pein, her best friend, the person she grew up with and cared about the most. Madara had told her there was a way to get him back, and she was ready to take that risk.  
Konan led Madara into a fairly dark room, there were no windows, and the only light came from the single bulb in the center of the ceiling. Life-sized containers sat against the walls on either side, and in the middle of the room on the floor, very elaborate sealing marks were written in blood. Along each container, a dead body also laid, dead from a single stroke to the heart.  
"Excellent. Let us get to work." Madara mused, stepping into the middle of the sealing marks, as Konan sat and observed with watchful eyes. He smirked from under his mask, forming quick seals with his hands, and mixing his blood with the wet blood on the floor. Slowly, each mark started glowing a bright yellow, the blood seeping over to the lifeless bodies and the containers, unless almost the whole floor was covered in blood except for the glowing seals, and where Madara sat. He muttered something strange under his breath, as Konan watched in shock, she had never once heard of a jutsu so…well bloody. Blood was everywhere; she grimaced at the site of the blood literally seeping into her sandals.  
Her attention on the blood was quickly distracted by the lifeless bodies beginning to take other forms. Her eyes narrowed on one in particular, it was beginning to look vaguely familiar. The victim had long black hair that was very unkempt, but now it almost seemed to lighten and almost shorten, which was almost impossible to say the least. What was Madara doing?  
She looked at all the bodies in the room; all of them seemed to be changing in some way.  
That's when a bright light suddenly shone, blinding Konan for a moment as she covered her eyes with her sleeve, fighting to watch Madara.  
"It's done." Madara spoke out, not even seeming tired at all, standing up. Konan scoffed, putting her arm down, noting that all the blood was gone.  
"What was that all about?" She asked, seeming peeved that all of the waiting was for nothing.  
"Are you blind, Konan? Look around you." Madara seemed amused, chuckling darkly, while motioning around him.  
Konan turned her head to look at a body, the one she was staring at earlier. Her eyes widened in slight shock.  
"Pein…?"  
His name slid off her tongue, after not using it in so long, it felt right to say.

-

"I'm just saying, I think Sasuke really should just go all suicide bomber, and run in there and blow up!" Naruto exclaimed to Caty, shaking his head, "I told Sakura that and she punched me!"  
"Geez, I wonder why…" Caty muttered, rolling her eyes, giving him a look.  
"Why?" Naruto asked dumbly, giving his friend a blank stare. They were currently on their way to Ichiraku's to eat some well-deserved ramen. It was still the same day that they had been at the meeting, and after taking a good 6 hour 'nap', they decided it was a fairly good time to go get something to eat.  
"So what exactly are we going to do about this whole Akatsuki thing?" Caty asked, shuffling her feet against the ground. Naruto scratched his head thinking about it.  
"I...don't know.." He sweatdropped, dropping his head.  
"I knew it was too troublesome to ask you..." Caty pursed her lips, shaking her head.  
"You sound like Shikamaru." Naruto pointed out, laughing slightly. A light seemed to go off in Caty's head, her eyes shined brightly, looking up.  
"That's it!" She exclaimed, smacking her hand down into her palm.  
"...To sound like Shikamaru?" Naruto asked, he was confused as ever, "Caty, I don't think sounding smart is gonna scare the Akatsuki away..."  
"No, you dimwit!" Caty exclaimed facepalming, as she walked into Ichiraku's, and plopping down, "I mean that Shikamaru can help us get people to help us and stuffs!"  
"I'm...almost pretty sure that isn't going to work...Believe it." Naruto sighed, his blue eyes dimming slightly from being discouraged.  
"Why?" Caty frowned slightly, examining him, ordering her ramen.  
"I think he'd be too lazy." Naruto pointed out, "He'd fall asleep or something on the job."  
Caty's head hit the table in defeat, this was going to be harder than she thought.


	3. Chapter 3

Authors Note: This is the next chapter 8D

Uhm, I need help though. You guys should help me think of pairings XD I mean pairings with everyone, including my OC, Caty. I have no idea for the pairings. If you can leave ideas in a review, that'd be great! Thanks!

….

Caty and Naruto made their way to the Naras' Clan property. They had already gotten their ramen, and decided the next goal was getting help to fight the Akatsuki. They advanced to the Nara property, and almost gasped at the sight. It was beautiful, to put it lightly. The trees towered above them, flowers blooming on some. Caty looked at it in awh, while Naruto shrugged it off. Most likely used to seeing the Nara property.

"Shikamaru's mom said he should be around here somewhere..." Caty muttered looking up in the trees.

"I wouldn't bother looking in the trees. He's probably asleep in the meadow." Naruto pointed out, scratching the back of his head. Caty sweatdropped, sighing in a disappointed fashion. Naruto shrugged, walking off in a direction, which Caty presumed was to the meadow. She shuffled after him, hoping Shikamaru could help them out somehow. She walked out of the field to see a lump lying down next to what appeared to be a small deer.

Caty let out a small coo at the cute animal, walking slowly forward to not scare it.

"Hey, Shikamaru!" Naruto exclaimed loudly, running forward, causing Caty to jump, as well as the deer to run off into the forest. Caty gave Naruto a sharp glare, walking faster now to Shikamaru.

Said boy slowly opened an eye, glancing up at the two newcomers.

"It's you two…what do you want?" Shikamaru yawned, sitting up and rubbing his head.

"We need your help." Naruto said, giving him a wide grin.

Shikamaru rolled his eyes, "Troublesome. What do you want?"

Caty shot him a small glare, "Remember the meeting from earlier?"

"How can I forget? I lost sleep." Shikamaru responded, clicking his tongue.

"Well, Naruto and I want your help to fight the Akatsuki." Caty said, casually, as if it wasn't a huge deal. Shikamaru's eyes widened a little, before going back to normal.

"Why me? I mean, I understand someone like Sasuke or Neji, but me?" He asked, shaking his head, "This is troublesome."

"Neji is who we are going to next. I refuse to ask SASUKE for help." Naruto stated, shaking his head, pounding his fist into his palm. Caty nodded in agreement, turning to Shikamaru.

"Besides, you're smart, you think of tactics quickly, and you can stop a lot of enemies in their tracks. I mean, you are pretty much a triple threat." Caty pointed out, hoping maybe flattery would help get them somewhere.

Shikamaru smirked a little at her words, most likely agreeing with her in his head. His smirk disappeared after a few seconds, before sighing deeply.

"Alright, I suppose I can help." His answer was relief to Caty's and Naruto's ears, as they cheered loudly, tackling Shikamaru in happiness. Shikamaru let out a short yell, falling backwards to the grass. He rolled his eyes at the childish ninjas, smiling slightly.

"Yah yah, get off of me before I change my mind." He stated, putting his arms behind his head, waiting for them to get off. Naruto and Caty stood up quickly, muttering their apologies.

"Are you going to come with us to go ask Neji?" Naruto asked, rocking on his heels.

"Must I?" Shikamaru asked, rubbing his cheek, "I was hoping I'd be able to go back to sleep actually."

"You can sleep after we beat the Akatsuki!" Naruto exclaimed, a huge smile on his face, fist pumping into the air, "We are gonna win! Believe it!"

Shikamaru sighed, once again sitting up to stand. He looked at the two of them, straightening his Jonin vest.

"To the Hyuga household then?" Caty asked, grinning slightly. Shikamaru and Naruto nodded, Naruto's being a little more enthusiastic than Shikamaru's.

Caty led the way through the forest, a little skip in her step.

"What's up with you?" Naruto questioned his friend, while Shikamaru raised an eyebrow.

Caty glanced back, grinning, "What do you mean?"

"You're skipping." Shikamaru deadpanned, looking at her incredulously. Caty usually wasn't so…cheerful, to put it simply.

"Oh," Caty said dumbly, looking at them, "I guess I am." She grinned with her eyes closed, scratching the back of her head.

"Uhm, yeah. Why?" Naruto asked, raising a brow.

"I dunno, maybe it's because I actually get to help on a big mission to save Konoha!" Caty exclaimed, fist pumping.

Shikamaru and Naruto looked at her oddly, "What do you mean?"

Caty rolled her eyes at Shikamaru's question, "For the smart one, you're kind of dumb. Think about it, when Sasuke left, I didn't get to help. When Naruto went to go save Gaara, I didn't get to go. All these cool things that are super important, I end up being left here." She answered, clicking her tongue, "I guess I was just starting to feel left off or something."

"Well, this time, you'll be there to help!" Naruto said encouragingly, giving her thumbs up, as Shikamaru just gave her a slight smile. Caty grinned at both of them warmly, before turning to continue skipping to the Hyuga compound.

….

"No." Neji answered, before turning back to go inside.

"But, Neji! We need you!" Naruto exclaimed, getting in his face. Neji scowled at Naruto, glaring at him.

"This idea is pointless, if all those villages couldn't beat them, what makes you think we can?" Neji questioned, leaning against the doorframe.

"Because, we are just that good?" Caty asked, trying to pry Naruto out of Neji's face.

"Nice try, but if we said that to the Akatsuki, do you really think they are just going to give up?" Neji asked, his Byakugan eyes staring her down. She laughed nervously under his glare, scratching her head.

"Well, see, if you were to help us, maybe we'd have a chance." Caty stated, hoping he'd take the bait.

"No."

"Yes?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Bu-"NO." Geez."

"I'll take my shirt off if you come, Neji." Naruto said, nudging Neji. Caty looked at Naruto with a look on her face, "What the hell?"

"I'm defiantly not going now." Neji stated, looking at Naruto in disgust.

"No, you were supposed to agree to come!" Naruto yelled, "I say I'll take my shirt off, and you say you'll come!"

"I don't think that works when it's a straight male, and another male telling him he'd take his shirt off." Shikamaru pointed out, face palming, "I knew I should have just stayed away from this."

"Please Neji? If it doesn't work, you can beat Naruto up whenever you want!" Caty tried once more. Neji scoffed, rolling his eyes, before looking at the three of them.

"Will it get you all to shut up?" Neji asked, stepping forward.

"It's a yes?" Naruto and Caty exclaimed, jumping up and down happily.

"No, I was just screwing with you. Later." Neji stated seriously, going back inside and closing the door.


	4. Chapter 4

Authors Note: WOOOO.

Sooo, Hye.

As you all…well most of you hopefully know…I'm Caty! :DDD The author of this story, that some of you like..Or may not like…w

YES THIS IS **IMPORTANT.** If it wasn't, it wouldn't be bolded….which I hope actually shows up when I post this XDD;; Any whom, back to important matters. I've come to notice that…no one knows who Caty is…*face palm*

So I'mma give you a somewhat quick Bio of her…which you should read please :DD

Oh, by the way…I hate Mary-Sues….so Imma try my best not to make Caty one :DD

Name: Caty Taiiji (Middle names aren't important. Apparently in Naruto, last names barely are too XD)

Age: (In this it's Shippuden, baby!) 17 (Most of the others are 17 or 18)

Sex: Female (dur?)

Crush: Iddkk? YOU GUYS SHOULD HELP WIFF PAIRINGS REMEMBER!

Personality: You'll see during the story.

Jutsu Type: Her main element is Water/Ice which means she has some type of ability to heal~

Skills (I thought I'd just do this to show how strong she is) these are 1-10, 10 being the strongest

Ninjutsu: 9

Genjutsu: 6

Taijutsu: 7

Forbidden jutsu: 0 (For now…ooooo I've said too much!)

Strength: 7

Speed: 9

Medical ninjutsu: 6 1/2 (Knows the basics)

Acting/infiltration: 9

Brains: - (she..ranges sometimesXD)

Hand seal knowledge: 9

Kekkei Genkai: To be found out! *if I can make one up XDDD*

Past: She lived with the Taiiji clan in an unknown area (even to me XD), and they sent her and her older brother Lash, to Konoha to train. Because well, Lash and Caty sucked and couldn't control their chakras. Lash left to the Akatsuki when Caty was 13, so about a year after Sasuke left. She doesn't know he joined the Akatsuki. Uh, so she became a Chuunin with everyone else and what-not. She is going to take the Jonin exams too eventually. Tsunade asked her if she wanted to become a student of her's, or if she wished to become an ANBU, but she declined because she doesn't want to lose her emotions.

Friends: With most people, she's friendly.

Enemies: The bad peoples; Course, she doesn't know her brother is one of them.

Looks: . Since I dunno if some of the sites I post this story on work with the actual code XD OH, I didn't draw this. I edited ittt to make it make Caty, so sorry for the very noticeable I'm sure failed edited version of an once amazing drawing XD Just ignore the anbu gear on her…*face palm* Oh, and she always has her left eye covered, either by bandages connected to her headband, or by her hair, which is usually parted to the side. You can see what her left eye looks like over on the left..which I DID draw XD I DO OWN HER LEFT EYE..and I DREW HER RIGHT ONE TOOOO I NTHE PICTURE XDD It was annoying me! I'll tell you all later in the story why it's red and has a scar. Oh, and she isn't that skinny in the picture XD

ONWARD WIFF THE STOREHH! :DDD

I hope you all read that..coz Imma QUIZ you later…

XDD Naw jk. But I hope you still read it…please go read it. GO READ IT NAO.

***************************************************3

_I turned to look at my 10 year old brother, his figure towering over my petite self. I was only 4, and well, I was short for my age as well. _

"_Caty, what do you think you are doing?" His voice spoke to me, looking at me with that caring look in his eyes. His usual bandages covering his left eye were gone, showing off his unique golden eye. He had two different colored eyes, one green, like my own, then a golden one. He peered into my green and grey eyes, smiling proudly, "Soon, your eye will change colors to a golden one like mine…" He mused, "It'll look good with your hair." _

_I smiled, rubbing my right eye tiredly, "Sorry, brother, I was just trying to fix this bird," I motioned to the ground, a weak bird with a broken wing laid, "And mommy said she doesn't want my eye to change anymore, like yours, Lash." _

_Lash smiled weakly, "It's just for your protection I suppose…" I tilted my head at him cutely, wondering what was wrong with him. _

"_Lash! Caty! Where are you?" We heard yells, as we were pulled out of our conversation. I put my hand up in the air, and waved cheerfully._

"_Over here, mommy!" I yelled, grinning brightly. Mommy ran over, leaning over to catch her breath. _

"_We've been looking all over for you two." She sighed, shaking her head slightly. _

"_Sorry Mother." Lash apologized, bowing his head. She looked over at him, before frowning slightly, then looking at me with a confused look. Her hair blew in the wind, presenting her right eye, which was green, and then her right eye, which was a dull white. As she was blind in her right eye. _

"_Why aren't you two wearing your bandages?" Mom asked, raising a brow, "Never mind. The elders and father wish to talk to you two." _

_We nodded, though I was nervous, last time I had seen the elders they made me go swim in a large lake with no help, and I couldn't swim. Lash got it much worse, for when he had to go, he had to walk through fire. I had ended up with pneumonia and Lash ended up with horrible burns all over his body. The elders had been horribly disappointed, almost as if they expected something else. I was still confused why they made us do this. I fingered my short red hair nervously, shifting on my feet. I looked at my mother, she was tall and beautiful, with long black hair that shined so brightly in the sun, and Lash got those traits. _

_She led us to the meeting hall, all the elders all ready sitting down. Father sat at the head of the table, waiting patiently for us. Lash and I stood there, awaiting orders. I glanced around, hoping if I'd get to use my floaties if I did have to go back into the lake. _

"_Let us see your eyes." An elder woman commanded softly. Lash nodded, moving a strand of hair kind of covering his eye. _

"_It's turned golden." Someone pointed out, "Well, this was unexpected." _

"_It turned this way a week ago. At first it was a reddish-pink, now golden." Father sighed, shaking his head, "I don't know whether to be proud, or worried." _

"_Is something wrong with Lash, daddy?" I asked innocently, my wide eyes staring at him. _

"_Her's seemed to turn grey." A man said, raising a brow, "When did this happen?" _

"_Same time as Lash." Mom said, rubbing her temple. _

"_Have they approved in chakra at all?" Someone asked, as my parents shrugged, "One way to find out." _

_They had given us the special chakra paper to try out. What we had to do was just simply touch it, and I guess it'd show us our chakra or something, I didn't really get it. _

_Lash was the first to go, grabbing the paper confidently. I watched in amazement as the paper lit up tall and proud, almost burning some of Lash's hair. The elders muttered among themselves, seeming surprised. _

"_Go ahead, Caty." Mom said encouragingly. I nodded, grabbing it, almost immediately the paper froze and cracked, hitting the floor and breaking into small water pieces. The elders looked at each other once more before coming to a decision. _

"_Lash and Caty Taiiji, we are sending you two away to Konoha to learn how to become proper ninjas and to control your chakra. You two have unstable control right now." They stated, leaning back. _

"_Why can't you just train us?" Lash shot back, surprised that we were going to be sent away. _

"_There is no one here anymore that deals with fire or water based chakras, and besides, no one here is really even cut out to be a ninja anymore. No disrespect to the elders." Father sighed, shrugging his shoulders defeated. _

"_We're moving?" I asked in a childish voice, "Everyone is coming with?" _

"_Not quite." An elder sighed, "We need all the help we can get here, I'm afraid you and Lash must fend for yourselves for awhile. We will get you to Konoha, but from there, you must be on your own." _

_Lash narrowed his eyes, "Caty's 4, and I'm only 10, you seriously expect us to be able to survive? We'll end up on the street!" _

_An elder stood up, glaring at Lash, "Boy, don't you dare raise your voice at me!" _

_The elder woman next to him patted his arm, "Now now…They are right. Perhaps The Third will help them." _

"_Yes, we must write to them immediately!" Father exclaimed, grabbing a sheet of paper and ink. _

_Just a few days later Lash and I were sent out with some of the older ninjas in the village, bringing us safely to Konoha. The Third had given us a small home in an apartment building, and Lash got a job at a weapon shop while attending the academy. I had daycare there too, so Lash could easily pick me up. It wasn't an easy life, but we tried to make the most of it. We made friends, and they were almost like family. We had better control of our chakra, but not complete control. Then they came for him, I don't know who though. Fire had shot out in what seemed from all directions, and trees were cut down. I can see the figures as I tried running out to them, but it seemed like I was running slower and slower, almost as if they were moving faster. _

"Caty!" Naruto exclaimed loudly next to her ear. She shot up, rubbing her head tiredly, "Naruto! I was trying to sleep!"

"Sorry," He apologized, "Today is a new day though! It's time to find more recruits!"

Caty sighed, closing my eyes for a moment, before peering into his shining blue eyes. He was grinning ear to ear, and Caty couldn't help but smile back, it's like his happiness was passed onto her.

"Alright, hold on." She sighed, getting up as he moved away, going to go wait in the living room. Caty looked into the mirror once she stood up, she had dreamed of her past again and how she got to Konoha, of course, she had no hard feelings for her clan. Back when she was 4, her left eye was grey, however, over the years it had turned into a red, almost like the color of her hair. She brushed through her now long red hair, Lash had liked it long, so she kept it that way. Speaking of Lash, she wondered how he was doing, and if his eye had changed too yet just like her's. She got dressed in her usual fashion, and set her headband slanted over her left eye. It reminded her of Kakashi-sensei, of course he was the one to give her the idea.

Caty went out to talk to Naruto, who was sitting on her couch with some ramen, "Morning~" He sang happily, content with his food.

Caty sweat dropped, shaking her head, "Thanks for eating my food."

"Oh, no problem." Naruto grinned, not really getting her true meaning behind it. Caty chuckled slightly, scratching the back of her head.

"Ready to go?" Caty asked, tilting her head. Naruto nodded quickly, setting his bowl down for Caty to clean up later. She followed him out the door, and thought about something.

"Who should we ask next?" She asked, clicking her tongue.

"Kiba?" He asked, rubbing her nose. Caty scrunched her nose, looking at him pointedly.

"Why don't we ask a girl?" Caty asked, glaring at him slightly. He laughed slightly, almost in a nervous way.

"You know they aren't good at this stuff, Caty!" He explained, as if it was smart. Caty responded with a glare at him, which he noticed fairly quickly.

"Oh yah. I forgot you're a girl." Naruto grinned, cracking up. Caty frowned, face palming,  
"Gee, thanks."

"Hey, Naruto and Caty!" They heard a slightly high voice call, as they turned around.

"Sakura!" Naruto exclaimed, waving. I grinned, waving as well.

"Sakura, we have to ask you something!" Caty grinned, about to go on, but was cut out by Sakura.

"Now isn't the time! I wanted to invite you two to join Sasuke's group to fight against the Akatsuki!" Sakura exclaimed cheerfully, clapping her hands together.

"What?" Naruto and Caty exclaimed at once, "He made a group?"

"Well, actually people kind of made it for him, but yah pretty much!" Sakura grinned, blushing a little bit. Naruto looked as if he was about to barf if she was going to continue.

"Who is all in it?" Caty asked, rubbing her temple, this was not good.

"All the Rookie 9 that was there pretty much, except for a few people. All of Team Guy joined too, along with tons of other people!" Sakura continued yelling, people were starting to look.

"ALL of Team Guy?" Naruto asked, narrowing his eyes, as Sakura nodded, "Neji, that bastard!"

"Sasuke probably tricked him into it or something." Caty offered to Naruto, hoping to calm him down, "Besides, Neji and Sasuke hate each other, Neji wouldn't go to him willingly."

"Actually, I heard he is the one who volunteered his team for it." Sakura pointed out, grinning proudly at her knowledge.

It was Caty's turn to glare, "Hyuga is so going down!"

Authors Note:

Ah, I hope that was okay D: Sorry if it was horribly boring! I just wanted to give some insight on Caty and such. I'm sorry D: The next will be better!


	5. Chapter 5

The trio of friends made their way to where Sasuke was holding his meeting, Sakura leading the way somewhat nervously. Naruto and Caty seemed angry enough that everyone seemed to be joining Sasuke's side, but wasn't it a good thing too that everyone wanted to help?

"C'mon you two. We are all one village, now isn't the time to be fighting with each other." Sakura sighed, shaking her head at them. Caty's face softened, contemplating what Sakura said, as Naruto scoffed and looked away.

"Sakura is right, Naruto." Caty sighed, nodding her head, "We aren't going to get anything done if we all fight."

Naruto muttered something under his breath, before straightening the headband around his neck.

"Fine, let's do this! Dattebayo!" Naruto yelled giving a fist pump as Sakura smiled warmly at him.

'That's my Naruto…' She thought, giving him a closed-eye smile.

"Oiii, Sakura-chan…do you have something in your eyes?" Naruto asked, raising a brow.

Sakura opened her eyes, blinking in surprise, "No, why?"

"Your eyes were closed for a long time…" He drawled slightly, crossing his arms behind his head, staring off into the sky.

Sakura rolled her eyes, mentally calling Naruto an idiot.

Caty grinned at the two of them, noticing they were coming up to a down-hill slope.

"It's just down here," Sakura said, locking her weight onto her left foot to make sure she didn't fall down the steep hill, "Careful though, it's steep."

"Yes ma'am." Caty said mimicking Sakura, sweat dropping as Naruto paid no heed to Sakura's warnings, running head first down the hill.

Sakura sighed as Naruto face planted into dirt at the bottom of the hill, as she slowly began sliding down the hill with her left foot to make sure she didn't lose balance. Caty followed shortly after her, hoping her balance would work out unlike usual. She wasn't the most graceful young adult around.

Sakura smirked to the side at her redheaded friend, "Don't fall Caty." She teased, as Caty shot her a look that clearly said 'fuck you'.

"Sakura, I love you and all, but I will push you." Caty warned, while Sakura giggled slightly, making her way down the hill. Caty finally said 'screw it' seeing as how she was still half way down the hill, and just ran the rest of the way.

Naruto, seeing as how he had fallen way before the two girls made it down the hill, was currently having a glaring contest with Sasuke, who was of course winning.

I mean seriously, it's a contest of glaring, Uchihas always win those, right?

(Like the battle of Mary-Sues, Sasuke wins from what I've seen in the manga XDDD)

Once Naruto blinked and Sasuke was declared winner, Sasuke cleared his throat to the ninjas surrounding them.

Everyone who was anybody worth mentioning was there. Those special people were Ino, Choji, Shikamaru, Neji, Tenten, Lee, Hinata, Shino, Kiba, Sai, Naruto, Caty, and Sakura.

The two girls made their ways to stand with the rest of the young ninja, as Sasuke waited impatiently to begin whatever he wanted to say.

His cold eyes studied them all thoroughly, as he stared into their eyes before examining their posture, determining if they were nervous and even able to fight.

"Not too bad I suppose. You will do." Sasuke finally stated, as some people simply nodded their heads, while others let out sighs of relief, worried to be cut down by the Uchiha.

"So what's the plan then, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, obviously in a foul mood. His once shining, big blue eyes were replaced to a dull dark blue slits in annoyance.

Sasuke turned his dark orbs to look at Naruto, smirking amusedly, most likely at the fact he was pissing his comrade off so easily.

"Well first off, we have to find out where the main hideout, and also find out where they plan to strike next to intercept the attack." Sasuke said, speaking out proudly, but had his arms crossed as if it was nothing.

"Well I could have told you that." Shikamaru muttered, crossing his arms behind his head, "Troublesome."

Sasuke shot him a short glare, before looking at the whole group again, "Any who, that means we are going to have to cover a lot of area in a short amount of time."

"This means we'll have to split up." Kiba concluded, petting his trusty dog, Akamaru, who was well to do in size.

"Exactly." Sasuke nodded, snapping his fingers, "Now, there is 14 of us, so 7 of us could go one way, and 6 the other way."

"But that isn't going to cover much space," Caty spoke up, smirking at the fact she got to rebel against something Sasuke said, he raised a brow for her to continue, "If there's only two teams, how do you propose we get in the other directions in little time? If two teams go north and south, what about east and west?"

Sasuke contemplated this, before retorting back almost immediately, "And if we run into the Akatsuki, you expect 2 of us to take them down?"

"Naruto and Sakura did it. As far as I'm concerned, I think it'd be okay." Kiba nodded, agreeing with Caty, "And if we needed help, maybe there should be a scroll or something or some way we can contact each other."

"Great idea, Kiba!" Caty announced, slamming her hand down into her palm before extending her hand to Sasuke, "Good plan, Sir Uchiha?"

He stared down coldly at the girl, clenching his fist, which didn't go unnoticed to everyone. Caty scoffed, bringing her hand back, and moving back next to Naruto,

"You know, people with a clenched hand can't shake hands." She pointed out, stating the obvious.

"It stays the same, 7 people on each team." Sasuke stated coolly, ignoring Caty, who stuck her tongue out at him

"…Can we at least pick our teams?" Naruto asked, his eyes glimmering once more.

"…You have 5 minutes." He decided, as some people cheered, "Although, I'm free to make some changes."

Everyone quickly moved, well, some moved while others just kind of sat there. In a weird way, it was kind of like getting picked for a game of kickball. It was awesome to be picked first or even second, but to be picked last was horrible.

Luckily, no one was picked last, seeing as you just kind of got pulled into a group.

Sasuke let his eyes wonder to each team, who were all just kind of staring at him expectantly.

On one team it was Neji, Tenten, Choji, Hinata, Shino, Sai, and Kiba. The next was Ino, Sakura, Sasuke, Caty, Naruto, Lee, and Shikamaru.

Actually, those weren't the actual teams at first, but for some reason Sasuke decided to make adjustments.

"From here on, Neji's team will be known as Team Raion. My team will be known as Team Ookami." Sasuke said, while people exchanged confused glances.

"Why weird names, Sasuke?" Naruto asked, raising a brow.

"Raion means lion. Lions stalk their prey and find out about it before striking. Team Raion will go and find out information about the Akatsuki, for example, where their headquarters are, from the surrounding villages, and if they get the chance to give Ookami information. Team Ookami on the other hand, means Team Wolf. Wolves hunt their prey down, and attack at once. Which is what Team Ookami will be doing, fighting the Akatsuki if we are to run into any, and protect the pups, aka, the other villages that may get attacked. Make sense?" Sasuke asked, crossing his arms with a blank look. Everyone nodded their heads, thinking about it,

"Yeah, I guess so." Naruto muttered, glancing away.

"So everyone should go get suited up and ready and meet me by the village gates tomorrow morning at 5. We will take off then. Bring anything you may need to fight the Akatsuki and for survival, as we do not know when we will be back." Sasuke commanded, before disappearing in a whirl of leaves. It was left silent as the ninjas stood there, contemplating Sasuke's words.

Shikamaru snorted slightly, causing everyone to look at him with an interested look,

"That's if…if we even come back at all…How troublesome." He sighed, before they all descended, getting ready for the long battle to come before them.


	6. 4th of July Special

This is for the 4th of July! So it has nothing to do with the story AT ALL! It's just a special hahaha :D I hope you enjoy, then the actual chapter should be out soon!

I'm still curious on who I should pair my OC up with, but I think I may have other pairings figured out~ :D thanks for reading, hope you enjoy!

"Happy 4th of July every one!" Naruto's loud voice boomed through the Steak House where everyone currently resided. Caty lifted up a hand to wave at her friend, sitting between Sasuke and Neji to her dismay.

"Hn." Sasuke scoffed rolling his eyes, "I don't even see why I bothered to come."

"Because Sasuke, this is a great chance to bond with each other!" Sakura grinned cheerfully from across the table from him. He just gave her a blank look, before leaning his head onto his palm. Naruto slid into the table next to Sakura, and across from Caty.

He had a foxish-grin planted on his face, his bright blue eyes shining in amusement.

Caty looked at him with a raised brow, rubbing her cheek,

"Though I do have to agree with Sasuke, why did you invite us all out here?"

"Because, it's the 4th of July, and it's time to celebrate! Believe it!" Naruto exclaimed, fist pumping and almost punching the low hanging light above them.

"So bothersome, Naruto." Shikamaru sighed suddenly, sliding into the seat next to Naruto. They were lucky the tables were so big for everyone to fit in. Soon enough all their friends from the other tables in the steak house sat in the chairs at the table. Luckily it wasn't a booth, or else everyone would be way too close for comfort.

Once everyone was there, they quickly ordered and consumed their food. Choji pretty much eating all of it, much to Naruto's dismay.

"So…who's paying?" Kiba asked, one hand rubbing his stomach, the other patting Akamaru, who was lucky to be in there, on the head.

"Uh…" Naruto glanced around, setting his eyes on Shikamaru.

"No way! I paid last time! I never said I'd pay this time!" He quickly retorted in anger, glaring at the blonde.

"Thank you, Shikamaru!" Suddenly came the loud applause of his comrades, who waved and grinned at him happily.

Shikamaru let out a sigh in exasperation, digging around for his wallet, pulling out some bills and setting it down on the table.

"Now what?" Sakura asked curiously as they all exited the building, crowding around in a circle.

"Party?" Caty asked, rocking on her heels, "Then go out to the hill or something to watch the village's fireworks?"

Ino grinned at the red head in approvement, nodding, "I knew you weren't THAT bad, Caty! We can throw a party at Sakura's, and then head out for fireworks!"

Caty sweat dropped at the girl, scratching the back of her head, "Right."

"Hey! Who said you could have it at my house?" Sakura asked, crossing her arms stubbornly, glaring at Ino sideways.

"Because, your parents are out of town, and it's probably actually decent looking. Plus, you have food." Ino pointed out, wagging her finger in Sakura's face.

Sakura let out an agitated grow, throwing her arms in the air,

"Fine, we can have it at my house. But you guys have to clean up or else my parents will kill me!" Sakura exclaimed, grabbing onto Ino's arm, "And you have to help decorate."

Ino grinned brightly at her pink-haired friend, "Of course, I planned on it. Come on, let's go get flowers!"

"Hold on." TenTen said, causing the girls to pause and look at her curiously.

"What?" Sakura asked, raising a thin brow.

"For games, I refuse to play any of those immature games." Tenten stated, raising her lip back in a snarl.

"Awh, but why?" Ino whined, frowning at her. Her long blond pony-tail swished around her, as she turned her full body to face them.

"Tenten is right," Caty started, now standing next to the weapon master, "We are ninjas, and we shouldn't waste our time playing childish games like Spin the Bottle and such."

"…I wanted to get Sasuke…or Sai…" Ino muttered to herself, crossing her arms pouting. Sakura sweat dropped, grabbing onto her wrist to drag her off.

"…Now what?" Naruto asked, looking at the silent ninjas, who were wondering the same thing.

"Go home and sleep." Shikamaru yawned, walking off before anyone could protest against him.

"I wonder if we are supposed to dress up for this thing." Tenten sighed, looking up at the sky, "I hope not."

"I doubt it." Caty muttered, crossing her arms behind her head.

"But you girls should anyway!" Kiba exclaimed, giving them a wolfish grin, while the females in the group stared at him awkwardly.

"Do it! I DARE YOU!" Naruto yelled, fist pumping, knowing that all the girls left were the ones who never dressed up. Hinata blushed, poking her fingers together nervously.

"Oh Hell no." Caty said simply, staring him down.

"Hinata, will you dress up for me?" Naruto asked, getting in front of Hinata who turned red almost immediately. She nodded slowly, before falling to the ground.

"…She probably took it the wrong way when he said 'for me'." Neji muttered, rubbing his hand down his cheek.

"Does this mean we have to dress up?" Tenten asked Caty, who shrugged.

"I'm not, so you shouldn't have to either." Caty replied simply, walking off.

"Where are you going?" Kiba called after her.

"Well, some of us don't want to smell like beef all day, so I'm going to take a shower." Caty called over her shoulder, raising her hand up in a dismissive manner.

Tenten nodded, before running after her friend, seeing as they lived in the same direction.

Soon one by one, everyone began departing to their respective households, leaving Neji to pick up the poor Hyuga girl and bringing her home with him.

A few hours later, a knock sounded at Caty's door. Sighing, she opened the door to be greeted by a lone flower pinned to her door. She raised a brow, grabbing onto the lilac flower, noticing the note that fluttered from it.

She sighed, reading off that the party was starting now, and she was to be there immediately. Wondering why Ino couldn't have just knocked on the door and told her that to her face, she grabbed her vest and headed off.

Caty both listened and didn't listen, as she was dressed differently than her usual attire. She wore a long sleeved button up, long shirt, with the sleeves rolled up jus t under her elbows. Then she wore a black zipper vest that looked very much like the ANBU vest, with the same pockets, and thicker straps. The shirt's collar was folded loosely over the vest, and the shirt was long so it was popping out from under the vest, which wasn't buttoned up. Then she wore a choker collar with a golden cat bell on it, along with black fingerless gloves. For pants she wore dark green Capri pants that were rolled at the bottom with big pockets on the sides. She wore her normal ninja shoes, but left her headband off.

She nodded to Tenten who was suddenly at her side, walking with her to the party.

Tenten was dressed somewhat up as well, keeping her Chinese style up. She wore a dark red kimono top just like the pink one she wore back when she was younger, except this one had a black fancy dragon wrapping itself around the shirt, its head ending on her breast. She wore dark Capri pants and her heeled ninja shoes as well.

The two females made their way to Sakura's house, which was already emitting sound of people yelling and loud music.

The two must have been late, because everyone was already there, and Caty was surprised that everyone seemed to be having fun. Even the lazier or more unemotional people seemed to have small smiles or smirks plastered onto their faces.

"Tenten! Caty! Glad you two made it!" Sakura exclaimed, ushering them over to her. She was wearing a red kimono with black shorts underneath, so it wasn't too girly or too tomboy. It suited her personality now that she grew out of the completely obsessed with Sasuke faze.

Ino on the other hand, wasn't like Sakura. Caty blinked at the blond who was currently sashaying her way over to the three females.

Her hair was down and left in waves that went to her waist, and wearing more make-up than usual, but she didn't look like a clown at all. Then she wore a form fitting dark blue dress that had a v-cut, and slit slightly at the knees revealing her legs. Luckily, she chose to wear black shorts underneath so she wouldn't be flashing anyone if she was dancing. She didn't look like a slut, and Caty was slightly jealous. Ino usually looked pretty, and she could really pull off the outfit without looking like a total whore.

"Nice outfit, Ino." Tenten complimented, nodding her head.

"Yeah, it's nice." Sakura added, grinning at her friend who seemed somewhat nervous.

"I agree too," Caty started, before raising a brow, "But isn't it almost a little much?"

Ino's eyes widened slightly, her cheeks turning pink. Ino wasn't one to blush, she was always so confident, so this came as a surprise.

"You think so?" Ino asked, looking down at herself, muttering something about being idiotic.

"What's wrong?" Caty asked, tilting her head curiously.

"Do you think Sai thinks so too?" Ino asked, almost shyly. Sakura's eyes suddenly widened, choking on her own spit.

"Whoa, what?" Sakura yelled, punching her chest to stop her from coughing.

"You…you like Sai?" Tenten asked, not able to really hold her surprise either.

"Oddly, I don't think I'm all that surprised…" Caty trailed off, scratching her cheek, looking for the boy they were discussing.

"Is it that noticeable?" Ino asked, suddenly looking up.

"No. I didn't even notice and I always see you two!" Sakura exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air.

Naruto gave Sakura thumbs up from his seat on the couch next to Sasuke,

"Yeah, Sakura! Way to throw you hands in the air, and wave them like you just don't care!"

Caty stifled a laugh for her friend's expense, before looking around the room, "That reminds me, Hinata was supposed to dress up."

"Hinata? Oh yah, she's hiding in the bathroom." Ino waved off, before droning on about Sai.

Sakura rolled her eyes at Ino, shoving Tenten to talk to Ino while she dragged Caty to go find the Hyuga.

Sakura was right, as they heard Hinata talking to herself on the top floor bathroom, as they knocked slowly. Hinata slowly opened it, allowing Sakura and Caty to enter and peer at her curiously. She had dressed in a purple gown, and her long hair was in loose curls. Caty raised a brow at her,

"You really did dress up," She commented, grinning slightly, while Sakura patted Hinata on the shoulder.

"Come on, the party is downstairs, you didn't come here to hide now." Sakura said, smiling warmly at Hinata, grabbing onto her wrist and tugged her gently. Caty chuckled, leaving with them and heading downstairs.

"Hinata! You look so cute!" Ino commented right away, running over to the trio, her dress trailing slightly in the air. Kiba leaned backwards to peer at her backside, but luckily for her she was wearing shorts.

"Yah Hinata, I don't see why you were hiding." Kiba said to his teammate, leaning against the wall while she blushed as everyone turned their attention to her.

"Hey Hinata! You really did get dressed up! Good job!" Naruto exclaimed, cheering slightly. The Hyuga's eyes rolled backwards, almost fainting, but Neji patted her on the shoulder comfortably. She looked up to him, nodding thankfully.

"See, it's not that bad." Caty grinned, giving her thumbs up, "And you got noticed by Naruto, so it's all good, ne?"

Hinata nodded her head, smiling slightly, going back to poking her fingers together childishly.

Ino sighed, shaking her head at Hinata's antics, placing a hand on her waist.

"Come on Hinata, you shouldn't be so embarrassed or else he's totally going to tell you like him!" Ino exclaimed, looking at Hinata suddenly, who glanced around nervously.

"When are the fireworks?" A cool, emotionless voice sounded from behind Ino, as her mouth suddenly dropped. She turned her head to look behind her, only to reveal the boy who had trouble with feelings, Sai.

"Oh, Sai!" Ino exclaimed, clamping her fist together in front of her face, turning a light shade of red, "The fireworks are soon!"

Caty exchanged glances with Sakura, who face palmed at the hypocrite that was Ino.

"…Then shouldn't we go?" Sai asked, giving her a closed eye smile. Ino nodded quickly, grinning warmly,

"Sai is right! Let's get going!" Ino yelled, fist pumping in determination. Everyone nodded, while Lee let out a loud 'YOSH!', heading out the door. Luckily for Sakura, there wasn't really any mess for her to pick up, other than restocking her fridge since Choji was there.

They herded up to where the Hokages' faces were sculpted, everyone sitting down or standing up. Ino sat down next to Sai, who was working on drawing while waiting for the fireworks, while Hinata took her place next to the excited Naruto. Sakura stood with Caty and Tenten, who were still confused as to how Ino could like Sai. Sasuke and Neji leaned against the large tree, seeming to talk about something quietly to each other, which was new seeing as how they never did really get along.

Kiba sat with Akamaru next to Hinata's feet, Shino standing behind him. Lee took the chance to do some hardcore training while waiting, running around everyone then doing some intense looking moves in the air. Finally, Shikamaru laid on the ground, staring up at the sky with Choji next to him eating chips.

They began hearing loud booms and bangs, directing their attention to the sky as the bright blast of fireworks began. Everyone crowded together to get a better look at the sky, as blue and red orbs shot up, and then exploded in different colors, each a different shape or kind.

"It's pretty." Ino cooed to Sai, who nodded, staring at the sky curiously. Probably wondering how such puny things could make a girl coo and be so mesmerized. An exploding kunai certainly didn't do that.

"It's weird how this kind of stuff brings us all together so well," Sakura commented, while Caty looked over at her from the corner of her eye, "I mean no one has even began fighting yet."

"Sasuke and Neji were talking earlier, and I thought those two morons hated each other." Caty laughed to herself, going back to looking at the sky.

"Idiot." She heard Sasuke mutter from her side, causing her to look at him in surprise, and Sakura to cough slightly,

"When the hell did you get here?" Caty asked, crossing her arms.

"I've been here, now shut up and watch." Sasuke ordered, glancing at her for a moment, then turning away.

Caty was about to respond, but Neji cut her off, "Listen to the Uchiha. The finale is coming."

Caty shot him a sharp glare, not even noticing him behind her.

"God, I feel like a horrible ninja." She muttered to herself, turning to the finale which started as soon as she looked up. Twenty fireworks shot up all at once, blowing off at different times, all seeming to be different colors. The fireworks lit up the starless sky, lighting up Konoha in many colors. From all the way on the mountain, the teenaged ninjas could see all the villages staring up at the sky in utter amazement. I guess Holidays really did bring us all together.


End file.
